Binotto: Ferrari was ahead of McLaren in Austin

Mattia Binotto believes that Ferrari has performed better than McLaren at last week’s United States Grand Prix.

Why it matters: Ferrari managed to outscore Mercedes at COTA, which is crucial in the battle for 3rd place in the Constructors’ Championship.

Details:

• Binotto is frustrated that Carlos Sainz finished 7th.
• The Ferrari team principal emphasizes the Italian outfit’s progress in the 2021 season.

What he had to say:

• “If you look generally-speaking this season McLaren has been always very competitive in medium, high speed corners and again it is the case here in Austin. But I think if I look at the overall performance this weekend we have been ahead of them.”
• “This was [evident] in quali and Charles… finished 35 seconds ahead of Ricciardo. Generally speaking in the overall balance of the lap we have been clearly fastest this weekend. That’s is why I think it’s a shame with Carlos not having been ahead of the end of the race with Charles.”
• “If you consider last year, it’s a really big step forwards. We still know there is a gap to the best engine today, but we believe that that gap is not so dramatic.”